Projects
(STPP) Program and DDP will be working on projects together in several areas, including 1) accessible voting machines, 2) equal employment opportunities and online hiring systems, and 3) inclusion in government planning for climate change and related weather emergencies and disasters.
As a part of this work, STPP will produce technology and policy landscape analyses, including social, equity, and political impact assessments. We will also produce policy briefs and other materials to support DDP's advocacy. For the voting project, for example, we are working with DDP to understand the problems that people with disabilities face while voting in-person; in 2020 voters with disabilities were nearly twice as likely as nondisabled voters to experience problems when voting. Our research team will analyze and compare the three types of Voter Assist Terminals (VAT) used in Michigan, and investigate both local VAT selection processes and the logistics related to machine maintenance and poll worker training. We will then provide DDP with recommendations on potential advocacy targets, which could include a more inclusive process for VAT selection, improved poll worker training, or increased resources for VAT testing and maintenance, in the City of Detroit and at the national level.